''After a podium finish here last year, it would be good at a minimum to repeat that,'' Paddon said of this week's event in the coastal New South Wales town of Coffs Harbour.
Paddon and Marshall get back in the Hyundai i20 Coupe WRC after a five-week gap since their last WRC event in Wales.
With no official test days for the long haul events, they will be relying on knowledge gained through the season and engineers to have the car set up correctly for the rugged, dusty forest tracks and sweeping shire roads ahead.
''Wales Rally GB seems like a long time ago that we were in the car, and with no test that means shakedown on Thursday is quite important to get back in the groove of the car.''
The pair will start Friday's 101.68 of competitive kilometres ninth on the road among the 12 WRC entries.
''The weather for the next few days is looking a bit touch and go at the moment, with some rain in the forecast - we are not hoping for that as it would make things very difficult from our road position, but we will be pushing hard no matter the conditions.''
The route is the most heavily revised in several years, with 16 new daytime stages, using different roads or sections of former roads in the reverse direction.
''Although we are writing notes for about 80% of the rally, they are still quite familiar stages as most are reversed or a different configuration. But it does add the challenge of writing notes from scratch, which I enjoy.''
The rally was a real mix, with some flowing country farmland stages along with forest stages.
Paddon will have a group of more than 80 supporters watching his every move as they take advantage of the handy access to the event.
''It's great to have our own VIP group of more than 80 people travelling with us again this year, as well as the many other Kiwis crossing the ditch to enjoy some WRC action. Makes it feel like a home rally to me and the support is always appreciated.''
A spokeswoman said yesterday any decision on Paddon's 2019 would hopefully be made by the end of the year.
